Catherine sues Hello! for £2m

It was the celebrity wedding of the year, with a New York ceremony underwritten by the sale of exclusive pictures to a celebrity magazine. Each guest at the lavish New York nuptials of Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas was asked not to take pictures so the exclusive deal the couple had agreed with OK! would not be compromised.

As guests feasted on lobster and rack of Welsh lamb, the only photographers the couple knew of were those working for the glossy magazine where the images were due to appear a week later.

When bitter rival Hello! obtained snatched pictures of the reception at New York's Plaza Hotel in November 2000, the bride's day of joy became a battle, with the couple and OK! on one side, and Hello! on the other.

Hello! had its pictures on the streets three days before OK!, prompting the couple to go to court to have the magazine removed from newsstands.

Today Zeta-Jones and Douglas sued Hello! at the High Court for damages of £2 million and accused it of a "conspiracy" to publish the blurry pictures.

They are seeking damages against the magazine, its mains shareholder Eduard Sanchez, as well as an agent and a photographer, for loss of income from the syndication of the pictures.

The couple also claim they were distressed "because they felt their private lives to have been "violated", and want compensation for damages caused to their professional reputations by the poor quality of the pictures.

A lawyer for the Hollywood couple, which is being backed in the action by OK!, accused Hello! of being "miffed" that its rival's offer of £1 million had been accepted and their offer of just under £2 million had been rejected by the film stars.

Michael Tugendhat QC said Hello!'s major shareholder, Eduardo Sanchez, had been upset that what would have been the biggest investment in the magazine's history had failed to be accepted. Mr Tugendhat told Mr Justice Jacob: "He was miffed that his own offer had been rejected. The decision to publish the photographs was not just for personal gain."

The couple are due to have their case heard at a trial lasting up to 20 days, which is scheduled to take place next January, although it is unclear if Mr Douglas or Ms Zeta-Jones will take the stand.

The other two people named as part of the conspiracy are an agent called the Marquesa de Varela and Philip Ramey, a photographer in Santa Monica, California.

Hello! is contesting the claim and Henry Barr QC, who is representing it and Mr Sanchez, rejected the allegation of a conspiracy. Mr Carr said Mr Sanchez had been offered the pictures on the day after the weddingand had arranged for their publication in the next issue of the magazine.

The also allege that Hello! breached the Data Protection Act by using the pictures, but Mr Carr told the court: "The Act was not designed for film stars to object to unflattering images."

The couple's wedding was planned as a military operation with security guards to keep photographers at bay and to frisk guests and staff for cameras.

More than 15,000 copies of pictures of the new Mrs Douglas in her wedding dress, and the bride kissing the groom were sold before OK! successfully banned further sales.

But Hello! successfully appealed against the ban, with both celebrity magazines eventually being on sale on the same day.

The pictures the couple objected to showed Zeta Jones in a jewel-studded bustier with a bustled satin skirt, and one of her playfully brandishing a cake knife at Douglas.

Other celebrities who have had their weddings covered by OK! include David and Victoria Beckham, and Anthea Turner and Grant Bovey.